Brown Bag owner freaks out, threatens after Yelp review

Terry Matthews, owner of the overnight eatery The Brown Bag in Troy, responded viciously to a negative review on Yelp, using the c-word toward the reviewer, repeatedly calling her a “bitch,” saying “you’ve got no idea who you’re dealing with you (f-ing) bitch” and “I really wish you would (return to the restaurant) so I can smack the (sh-t) outta you honey.”

I was first made aware of this in November, but, because the commenter, who goes by the nom-de-Yelp of Emma S, also works in the restaurant business in Troy and insisted on remaining anonymous, I chose not to spotlight it. I confirmed with Matthews at the time that the responses were indeed from him; he said he regretted their extremity. But Emma S, who has now unmasked herself to her hundreds of Facebook friends as Kim LaBerge, says she has heard from others who have received similar attacks from Matthews, including one who also emailed me with proof, and LaBerge says she continues to be harassed because of her Yelp reviews, by Matthews and his supporters.

Matthews has a history of incendiary responses to online criticism. In fall 2013, after a crowd mobbed Fourth Street in downtown Troy near the former club Kokopellis and forced Matthews to close for the night, he sprayed nastiness all over Facebook and threatened to close his business for good, though he later recanted. And earlier that year, when a Yelp reviewer described The Brown Bag’s fries as excessively greasy and shared a photo of a grease-soaked bag, Matthews responded, “you obviously have some serious problems. Please do not return to my restaurant.”